Common Ground
by klipdoctor
Summary: When Charles James returns from helping the victims of a tsunami, a nasty surprise greets him in the UK. Set in my Captain's Log universe and taking place between Captain's Log and Missed Me. COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.**

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**Common Ground – Chapter 1**

His mobile phone chirped, indicating a text message, and Charles James went to pick it up. It was a beautiful April day with temperatures just nudging into the late-teens and he was currently finishing off some paperwork in the study, preparatory to taking his afternoon run. He had been back from Indonesia for all of three days after the clean-up following the horrific tidal wave that had hit nearly two months ago.

He could have chosen to come back sooner, but since he knew that Molly was away on a course which was part of her JNCO requirements to be promoted to Corporal, he hadn't bothered to rush back. There was nothing worse than sitting in the house twiddling his thumbs while he knew Molly was having to do some horrific survival course where they dropped you on a mountain with only a jock strap (he supposed a bikini in her case) and a Mars Bar and told you to walk 50 miles to the nearest town!

Still, after nearly two months out there (a week at the beginning with Molly after she had given up her leave to fly out with him), he was finally back and ready to start some well-deserved leave of his own. It was Wednesday and her course was due to end on Saturday morning and he had been expecting to finish his reports and be ready to take her for a weekend of relaxing and pampering at some of their favourite places. He thought that after nearly two months away, and some of the worst stress he had ever experienced in his job, he might even join her for a spa session at their favourite hotel!

Grumbling to himself at the interruption to his thought processes, he picked up his mobile and looked at the screen. _Rebecca_. Why would Rebecca be texting him? He opened the message.

_"Charles I need to talk to you urgently. Celia says you are back from Indonesia. Can you give me a call?"_

His first thought was, _God, I hope Sam is OK_. But surely she would have just called him if something was wrong with Sam? This was strange. His relationship with Rebecca had been about as good as it could be in the circumstances over the nearly two years since he had left the Army. Luckily Molly and Sam got on very well and Molly was really sweet with him.

Rebecca was still pretty cold around Molly, and he supposed he could kind of understand that, however painful it was for him, and particularly for Molly who was determined to do her best for him and for Sam. He thought Rebecca was a bit jealous on two counts; firstly that he was with Molly now and secondly that Molly had such an easy, almost sisterly relationship, with Sam. Molly generally opted out of seeing Rebecca because of this, although on events like school plays and sports days where they both had to attend they were cool but civil. But he had seen the disapproving glares that Rebecca sometimes shot at Molly when she thought nobody was looking. It was sad, but her inflexibility with people of different social classes was, in any case, one of the reasons that they had split up in the first place. And it wasn't like Molly had split them up. They had been apart (including trial separation and divorce) for nearly two years before he had started going out with Molly. Unfortunately Rebecca's first post-marriage relationship hadn't gone the distance and he didn't think she had found anyone serious since then, which must be all the more galling for her, bearing in mind how close Charles and Molly had become.

Oh well, thinking about it wasn't getting him any closer to finding out what was wrong, so he gave her a call.

"Charles?" she answered, "Oh thank God!" Now he was worried. Her voice, normally so controlled, sounded brittle and emotional, as if she was just holding onto her emotions.

"Rebecca? Is everything OK? Is Sam OK?" he asked, wondering what was up.

"Sam? Oh no, don't worry, Sam's fine Charles. He's at school at the moment. He's looking forward to seeing you when you get down here. He's missed you, but he really appreciates your e-mails.

"No, it's not Sam. Well not directly, anyway. I-… It's difficult Charles, but I'm just going to spit it out… I've got cancer Charles. It's serious and it's advanced and they've scheduled me for an emergency operation next week."

He did not know how to react. Of all the things that he had expected, this wasn't it. She was still young; only in her early-thirties. She had never been ill, that he could remember. And they had Sam. Would she be OK? If she wasn't OK what was going to happen to Sam? All these thoughts swirled through his head as he desperately tried to get a grip of himself and say something to her. Finally he managed, "I'm sorry Rebecca… how did you find out?"

She replied, "I went in for a regular check up at the GP about three weeks ago. I had lost my appetite and wasn't feeling well and they took some blood tests. Then it all accelerated. I went in for a day of tests last week and your mother took Sam in the evening and I just had my consultation with my specialist this morning.

"Listen Charles, there's lots we need to talk about. Can you come to Bath?" Her voice was tired, but pleading.

It was a no-brainer. She was the mother of his child and his ex-wife. He still cared for her, even though he didn't love her, and she needed him, "Of course. I'm leaving now. I'll text you once I know what time I'll be there, probably in about two hours."

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

"Thanks for coming so quickly Charles," she said, smiling tautly as she opened the front door. He paused on the doorstep, not knowing whether to simply nod, or whether to kiss her or hug her. They hadn't touched much over the past three years but, deciding that she probably needed the support, he went in for a hug. She hung on as if for dear life and he knew he had made the right decision.

"Thanks," she told him eventually, disengaging from the hug, leading him into the house and closing the front door, "I needed that." She favoured him with a sad smile and led him deeper into the house. He hadn't been here very much. It was a nicely sized cottage with a small back garden just outside Chippenham, within easy reach of Bath. He knew that on the right of the hall there was a nicely sized lounge and behind that a kitchen with adjoining family room and views of the garden. It was towards the kitchen she led him now. The kitchen was to die for, with light wooden cupboards, a black granite work top and white floor tiles, and it was huge, at least 20 feet long and 15 feet wide and with a small table and chairs at the end, he assumed for breakfast.

"Would you like a coffee?" she asked him, to which he replied affirmatively and she went to the Nespresso machine. They both shared a love of coffee and he had bought her the machine for their last Christmas together. He smiled sadly as he saw it perched in pride of place on the counter in one corner of the kitchen. "Rosabaya isn't it?" she asked and he nodded.

They were silent until the coffee was made and then she picked up both cups, added saucers and put them on a tray (he couldn't help but smile – she had always done this for as long as he could remember. So unlike him and Molly who would just bung the drink in a mug and start sipping it) and led him into the family room. He'd never been in this room before. It was joined to the kitchen by a set of pullable doors which were currently open, but which could be pulled across the gap to separate the room. It was also a big room, at least 14 foot square, but was a lot more cosy than the kitchen, decorated with homely colours, and he could see a box of Sam's Lego tucked in next to the sofa and some of his Transformers toys on a bookshelf. The back wall was filled with bookshelves and in the middle was an area just about filled by a wide screen TV.

They sat opposite one another on the sofa and both reached for their coffees. It was a poignant moment. They had spent so many times relaxing together and sipping coffee. They both paused for a moment in contemplation, before Rebecca started to talk. Sitting back more comfortably in the sofa, she cradled her coffee cup in her hands and looked at him, "Thanks again for coming so quickly Charles," she told him, "It's all a bit of a rush. Mum and Dad are in Australia at the moment visiting Robert and Chris and the kids," Robert was her elder brother who worked in Australia for a major investment bank, "they've cut short their trip but they won't be back until Sunday, but the big issue is Sam. I'm going to be in hospital from Monday next week and will have around two weeks there and then, even though I will be out of hospital, I won't be able to take care of him at home for another week or ten days. We need to come up with some way to handle this – he needs to have somewhere to stay – will you be able to step in and spend some time with him?"

She looked at him pleadingly and he smiled at her. He had already considered this in the car on the way down. It was clear that she would be in hospital for some time and his first responsibility had to be Sam's well-being. There were two options, as he saw it, either he pulled Sam temporarily out of school and brought him to live with him and Molly in Aldershot, or he moved back over to Bath so that he could be with his son. Both had advantages and disadvantages but being in Bath was by far the best result for Sam – he could stay in school, and he'd need that support and the routine, and he'd be closer to his mother and in easier visiting distance. He had already resolved to move back over here for the next few weeks. He hadn't had a chance to talk to Molly but he was sure she'd understand. It would be tough, but at least they could spend weekends with each other.

The big question was where he would live and this was a difficult one to broach with Rebecca. He had thought about just moving Sam and him into his parents' house, but it was a good thirty minutes' drive from where Rebecca and Sam lived and away from the friends he was building up in the local area, although closer to some of his friends from school. But he thought that the trauma of his mum being in hospital would be significant and that Sam would probably benefit from keeping as many familiar routines as possible and, that if Rebecca could be persuaded, it would make sense for him to live at her home.

He became conscious that he hadn't answered Rebecca, and she was starting to look concerned, "Sorry, Rebecca, I was wool gathering. I had already considered this on the way over, and of course I'll step in. Have you given any thought to where Sam should live?"

She smiled softly, grateful that their son would be taken care of by the best person for the job. Then she grimaced at him, "I've thought about this a lot Charles and I know that this will be more difficult for you, but would you consider moving in here? Sam's already going to have so much to come to terms with and I think any routines that we can keep will only be for the best, so if you wouldn't mind staying here, it would mean a lot to both of us?"

He couldn't control his surprise and could feel his eyebrows rising, almost outwith his control. He could see her concern ratchet up and, as she went to speak, he raised his hand, "Don't worry Rebecca, I'd already reached that conclusion myself but I thought it would be a lot more difficult to persuade you." He told her, and she smiled.

"That's great Charles, thanks so much," and then she really gobsmacked him, "and obviously it's fine if Molly wants to stay here at the weekends."

This time he made no attempt to control his shock, and she smiled at him sadly, "Don't be so surprised. I'm pleased that the two of you are so happy, Charles. I'm not denying it's hard, but she's good for you and you seem much more balanced than you have been for a long time. You're going a long way out of your way to make everything the best it can be for Sam, and it's only right that I do the best I can to make everything as easy as possible for you. I know you haven't seen her for ages and it's not right that you will be separated from her again because of this."

After that they talked about the logistics of situation. She would speak to Sam's headmaster and some of his friends' parents to inform them of the situation and make sure he had the support he would need, and she would let Charles have a list of his after school activities and any matches that he would be involved with over the next few weeks, and she would speak to her specialists and her parents about keeping him informed. She also needed to sort out some legal affairs, including updating her will and setting up a power of attorney in case there were any complications. They had briefly discussed how they were going to break it to Sam and what they were going to tell him.

He would speak to his work and get a leave of absence and then he would try and get a message to Molly (she was on an exercise at the moment but he would send a written note and her course leaders would get it to her, hopefully before she finished the course on Saturday). He would stay in the area to speak to Sam tonight so that they could both be here for him, and over the rest of the day he would see his parents and explain the situation to them. He would look to drive across and move into the house on Sunday evening then he could help Rebecca run Sam to school on Monday morning, see his teachers, and help Rebecca get to the hospital for her admission after that.

All that was worked out, which took two additional cups of coffee and a sandwich, she showed him around the house briefly, handed him a set of spare keys, explained how to use the burglar alarm, and they parted, with him promising to return at five o'clock.

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

It was 16.45 when Charles parked his car back in the driveway to Rebecca's house. Hers was already in the garage, signifying that she was back from picking Sam up from school. He had spent a little while this afternoon with his parents, who were understandably upset by the development but had resolved to cancel their planned trip to the South of France next week so that they could be here for their grandson and son. He had also spoken to his colleague Georges, who had been very understanding and had told him he was due two weeks' leave anyway after the Indonesia trip and that he was welcome to have an additional two weeks compassionate leave if he needed it, and could either take additional unpaid leave or work from Bath for as long as he needed to. That should be fine for his needs.

He had also managed to send a message to Molly and had been assured by her course commander that he would get it to her as soon as she got back from exercise. He had simply told her that Rebecca was going for an emergency operation and that he had to move back to Bath for the next few weeks to take care of Sam, but that he would be able to tell her more when she saw him on Saturday. He had re-organised the surprise spa appointment he had booked for her to Sunday morning from Sunday afternoon; based on previous experience he didn't reckon she'd be good for much of anything on Saturday but he needed to leave for Bath by mid-afternoon on Sunday. He was sorry to ruin the weekend he'd planned out for them but some things were more important.

He was dreading this meeting with Sam. His son was a happy, bouncy nine year old, but he was still too young to comprehend the sort of changes that might happen in his life in the near future. He prayed that Rebecca would make it through this; he wasn't ready to tell his son that his mother was dead or dying – he just had no idea what he would say. He supposed that if it came to that there would be support for that conversation. He vaguely recalled that there were MacMillan nurses or some such who provided support to families. Maybe he should look into that anyway; Sam might need that whatever happened.

He switched off the engine, got out of the car, shut the door and walked up to the front door. "_DADDDEEE!_" sounded from inside before he had even moved to ring the bell. He crouched down as his son opened the door, ready to receive the brown-haired missile which shot at him. It was more difficult to pick Sam up these days, but with the tangential acceleration he was able to hoist him up to give him a hug, "Hi Sammy!" Rebecca hated the nickname, but Molly and Sam had started it as a joke between the three of them; now they were Molly, Sammy and Charlie, the three y's, whenever Sam came to visit. He took the opportunity to kiss his son on the cheek before he let him down. Sam was starting to approach the age where he didn't like those sort of displays of affection but he seemed to let this one go, obviously excited to see his father after nearly three months apart.

Pausing only to close the front door, he let his son seize his hand and lead him into the house, burbling away about his school happily. As they reached the kitchen he saw Rebecca standing at the coffee maker. She looked significantly less good than when he had seen her earlier. She was pale and nervous-looking, obviously concerned about the conversation which awaited them. He crossed the floor to again wrap her up in a hug. Rebecca had always been so self-assured. Seeing her like this was painful. She clung onto him again. Sam watched in confusion. He had seen his Daddy hug Molly like this many times, but never his Mummy, even when his parents were together.

"Thanks," she told him quietly, "It's been a tough day what with everything, and I'm not looking forward to this conversation one bit." He smiled wanly in agreement and she asked him more loudly, "Would you like a coffee Charles?" to which he replied affirmatively and then making a sterling attempt to make her voice normal, "Sam, will you pour an orange juice for Mummy? And what would you like to drink, darling?"

"Milk, please, Mummy," was the reply and she supervised him pouring some for himself, before telling him, "Sam, darling, Daddy and I have something to discuss with you, so why don't you come and sit in the Family Room with us?"

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**A/N 1 I've been planning this piece for a while. A reviewer of ****_Captain's Log_**** asked if I could write a story where Rebecca and Molly got to know one another. At the time I couldn't think of anything, but this came to me later. I went through a similar experience to Sam when I was a child, although my Dad wasn't as proactive as Charles. While the story is not really about Sam my experiences do help me to tell this story.**

**A/N 2 I have Sam going to King Edward's Junior School in Bath. It's noted for its academics and I thought that Rebecca would be very academically ambitious for her son. I don't know the area and only selected the school after some brief research on the internet, so if there are any Bath residents out there, apologies if I've got something wrong. **

**A/N 3 I'm taking a break from ****_Road Not Taken_**** for a while. It's an extremely complex story with lots of moving parts and I don't have the mental capacity to focus on it at the moment with my mother being ill. Having said that, I find writing very therapeutic, so I decided to work on this piece which is much simpler and has been banging around in my head for a while. Hope you enjoy it and if so, please review!**

**A/N 4 Finally, a huge thank you to every reviewer and everyone who PMed with words of support regarding my mother. I was really touched and totally bowled over. Thanks to you all.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.**

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**Common Ground – Chapter 2**

Charles looked up when his phone rang. Looking at the screen, he told the friend who had joined him for a drink, "It's Molly, I have to take this," and, receiving a smile and a nod, he answered the phone, "Mols, is that you?"

"Charlie!" came the concerned and exhausted-sounding voice from the other end, "Are you OK? We just finished the five day exercise and Sergeant Morris gave me your note. Do I need to come back?"

Smiling to himself he thought that that reaction was so Molly, "Don't worry Dawesy," he told her, "finish what you've got to finish; there's only two days left anyway. Besides, you sound shattered. Is it going OK?"

"Not bad," she answered, "at least my fitness is better this time, but it ain't 'alf tough. I can't wait to get back to you."

Aware of his companion signalling he told her, "By the way, Matt sends his best. I can't quite make out what he's signalling to me but I reckon he's implying you're a big softy!"

"You tell Corporal Geddings that he can stick it and we'll see who's fitter when I get back!"

He smiled. He missed her feistiness; she was always great value for money, "I'll pass that on! But from my point of view, you're definitely fitter Mols – I don't reckon I'd rate Matt in a dress!" he paused, enjoying the sputters from both the phone and the chair next to him, "I'll see you on Saturday morning Mols, but I just wanted you to know in advance that I'll have to make tracks early on Sunday afternoon. Good luck with the rest of the course and I don't want you to think about me 'til Saturday. Remember – stay focused, stay alert, stay al-"

"Yeah, I know Charlie," she interrupted him, "I love you but we really need to work on your material! I really can't wait to see you, even if it's only for a short time.."

He smiled to himself, "I know Mols, I've really missed you too. I love you too. Do your best and I can't wait to see you."

They signed off with him telling her to get some sleep.

"How did she sound?" Corporal Matt Geddings asked. Charles had become friends with Molly's basic training instructor after she first went to address the training groups at Pirbright and they joined her training instructors for a drink. Both Matt and his fiancé Nina were regular visitors at the Dawes/James residence, particularly if there was rugby on, and they all met for a drink regularly, postings and international disasters permitting. Sometimes they were joined at the pub by Matt's partner, Sophie Richards, and her husband Kevin.

"Knackered, but you know how it is." They both knew how it was, Charles as an ex-officer, and Matt as a serving soldier who had been through a similar course himself to attain his current rank, and had the joys of a SNCO or senior non-commissioned officer course to look forward to if he wanted to be promoted to sergeant.

"Yeah, that course is pretty pants," observed Matt, "still, at least she got a better time of the year for it this time. I can't believe she did the PNCO course in the winter, particularly after just getting back from Afghan. What an idiot!"

"Yep, she was pretty wrecked after that one," Charles remembered. Looking at his watch he asked, "Fancy a snack or do you have to head home?"

Luckily Matt, being a good friend, had agreed to join him for dinner, which had used up another evening, so now he just had to deal with Friday evening without Molly and he supposed he could find something to watch on TV for one night! They had talked about their respective jobs and the Army in general and rugby, about as usual, with both noting that the Bath vs Sale fixture was coming up later that month. Charles noted that, if he was staying in Bath, maybe Matt and Nina could come over and they could make a weekend of it. That was if Matt didn't mind staying with a bunch of southerners. Matt allowed that he may be able to endure that, if only to watch his beloved Sale thrash those self-same poxy southerners! They agreed that they would both ask their other halves. Charles hoped it would come off because it should be a good day out for him, Sam and Matt, and if Molly and Nina, who were thick as thieves, didn't want to join them then at the match, then they could avail themselves of some of the great shopping that Bath had to offer.

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

"Phew, you're a sight for sore eyes, but you look knackered Mols!" It was Saturday morning and he was waiting outside the gate at Pirbright Barracks from where Molly had just emerged in her utilities and carrying all her gear. He wasn't kidding that she looked lousy. She had a half healed scratch across her left cheek and dark smudges under her beautiful green eyes. Her eyes had looked tired and glazed when she stepped out of the gate but immediately brightened on seeing him and she ran towards him, dropped her stuff on the floor and jumped into a hug, wrapping her legs around his waist. He had held her tight. After the time alone after she'd left Indonesia, the last week and the heart-breaking news from Rebecca he revelled in feeling her against him, all the while conscious of the fact that she had lost weight again and sad because if she was going to be here and he in Bath, he wouldn't be able to fatten her up again. Eventually they had let go of each other, but not before exchanging a searing kiss which had resulted in cat calls and wolf whistles from all around them.

On the drive back from the Barracks he had told her about his conversation with Rebecca and about what they had decided. He had told her how sorry he was to have to go away again after being away for so long. She had smiled sadly at him and told him it couldn't be helped. She understood how important Sam was to him and she knew that he had to go. When he told her that Rebecca had suggested that she came to stay at the weekends she had been really surprised and touched. She had smiled sadly and told him she looked forward to it.

He had told her that he was sorry to leave her home alone again but suggested that maybe she should invite her grandmother over to keep her company at the house while he was gone. She had gotten a faraway look and he knew she was thinking about something, and he hoped she was not too disappointed. Then they got home and he helped her in with her stuff and started running a bath. They could at least do their best to enjoy what was left of the weekend.

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

It was Monday evening, and Charles James reflected on a busy few days. He and Molly had had as good a weekend as possible under the circumstances.

She had been pretty dead to the world after her bath (and some serious pampering by him) and he'd put her to bed. She had slept through lunch and he had cooked one of her favourite meals, roast lamb and roast potatoes for dinner. She had emerged just before dinner, looking much more rested, and they had had a really nice dinner together in their kitchen, just talking, cuddling and kissing one another. Then they had gone to bed, with him breaking the habit of a lifetime and leaving the washing up for the morning, and worked on getting physically re-acquainted.

On Sunday morning he had taken her for her surprise spa treatment at the Four Seasons hotel in Dogmersfield (one of their favourite bolt holes for special occasions), and she was really chuffed, and then they had come home for a bit of afters. As he left that afternoon he had shown her some of her favourite dishes he had cooked for her for the next few days which were sitting in the freezer. She had been really touched and told him he was getting so lucky next weekend. Then they had regretfully kissed goodbye and he had set out to drive to Bath.

As he had driven he had reflected on the conversation that he and Rebecca had had explaining the situation to Sam. He thought that it had gone as well as it could under the circumstances, but obviously Sam was upset. They had tried to play to the fact that he would get to spend more time with his Daddy and play down the fact that his Mummy was very ill and was going for an operation. They hadn't said how serious it was at this stage, but Sam was no fool and he had obviously realised that it was an abnormal situation. He had been in parts worried about his mother, but also excited that his father was going to stay with them.

At one stage Sam had asked about Molly. Rebecca and he had looked at each other before Charles had explained that Molly wouldn't be able to get time off work but that she would stay with them at the weekends. Part of him wished that she would be able to come and join them because God knew, he could do with the support, but there was practically no chance of her getting leave and he didn't want to pressure her to try, potentially causing issues for her with her CO.

Sunday night had been difficult. Rebecca was obviously nervous. She didn't drink very much normally but he had brought a bottle of red wine with him, hoping it would help her to relax a bit and it had worked. They had had Indian takeaway (Sam's favourite) as a treat. As Charles unpacked his stuff in the spare room later he couldn't help but wish that Molly was with him. As he unpacked the double photo frame, part of a set that his parents had given him and Molly for their first Christmas together, and that he took with him everywhere, he smiled sadly at her playful green eyes smiling out of it. He had recently replaced the original photo with one from their trip to the Caribbean this year and it brought back some wonderful memories. They had only been back from their trip for two days when the call had come to fly to Indonesia for the tsunami relief effort.

Monday had gone as well as it could. Rebecca's parents had accompanied them to the hospital having only got in from Australia on Sunday morning. Obviously they were distraught. Charles had been dreading the meeting. He had always got on well with her father, but had not had a cordial relationship with her mother (even when they were married) and their one meeting since the divorce, at Sam's birthday party, had been distinctly frosty. However today's meeting had been better, with Rebecca's father Lionel pulling him aside as Rebecca and her mother had examined all the features of her private room, to thank him for supporting her. Charles had told him that it was his pleasure.

Sam had been dropped off home about 4.30pm by his friend Dan's mother, Jenny, and she had introduced him briefly to her son, as well as the other two boys on the school run, Asad and Chris, and wished him luck for his first school run on Thursday morning. He had thanked her, bid her farewell and he and Sam had gone back to the family room. Sam was a bit down, understandably, so he had taken him outside to practice their passing for half an hour (Sam was an aspiring rugby scrum half, the position that Charles had played at school and university), after which Sam was much more cheerful, and then they had worked on his Maths homework for a while. Charles had enjoyed helping his son with his homework and couldn't help reflecting back on the fact that this was how they had often passed the evening when he and Rebecca had been together.

At about 6pm they had called a halt to the homework and Charles had told his son he could have half an hour off while he cooked supper (one of Sam's favourites, bangers and mash). He had just put the potatoes on to boil when Molly called on his mobile. They had talked a little bit about their days, although Molly was a bit mysterious about what she'd been up to; maybe she'd just slept for a lot of it, he thought. Molly asked him what he was cooking for dinner and he told her, bangers and mash, a little sad because it was one of her favourites as well, and he had bought the really nice farmhouse organic Cumberland sausages from the farm shop just down the road from their house in Aldershot. Molly made appreciative noises and then told him that she was about to get to her destination and could she speak to him later? He told her he was looking forward to it and they said their goodbyes.

Just as he hung up, the doorbell rang. He wondered who it could be at this time of the evening? Switching the outside light on, he opened the door, only to be greeted by a beautiful sight. On the doorstep stood Molly Dawes, dressed in denim jeans, black ankle boots, a Bath rugby top and wearing a black anorak. She was carrying her Army rucksack over her shoulder.

As he stood frozen, staring at her in disbelief she grinned at him and said, "Surprise!"

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**A/N Please review! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.**

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**Common Ground – Chapter 3**

Unfortunately the mashed potatoes were a bit on the soft side by the time they got to dinner! He had stood on the front doorstep for what felt like hours, drinking in the sight of her. She was grinning at him, obviously enjoying his total surprise, with her green eyes sparkling with mirth. She still looked tired, but not as tired as she had when he'd left her the day before, and the dark smudges under her eyes had faded quite a lot.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?" she asked cheekily and, as if in a trance, he stood to the side, allowing her to enter. He scooped the ruck sack off her back and squeezed past her, snagging her hand and leading her to the kitchen. Sam was still upstairs doing who knew what, so they would have a chance to talk.

Arriving in the kitchen, he dropped her rucksack by the wall and swung round to face her, just as she pulled him in to a tight hug. He returned it, but then pushed her away so that he could look into her eyes, "Molly, what are you doing here?" he asked, hands still gripping her upper arms.

She smiled up at him, "Well, I didn't want to leave you and Sammy on your own – who knows what trouble you'd get into here by yourselves?!" she joked, "And on top of that, I wanted to spend some time with you. So yesterday afternoon, after you'd left, I spoke to Sergeant Smith and this mornin' we both spoke to HR and to Captain MacDonald, and the upshot is that, as of tomorrow mornin', I've got two weeks of compassionate leave, and the Captain tells me I can bring forward that week of study leave we talked about takin' at the end of June if I want to as well."

He frowned, "Mols, I didn't want you to have to call in any favours."

She smiled up at him slightly sadly and told him, "I know Charlie, and that's sweet of you, but if you're ever goin' to call in favours, now's the time ain't it? Besides, I didn't just do it for you. I'm here for Sam as well. He's goin' to need all the support he can get too. I assumed Rebecca wouldn't mind since she already told you I could stay here at the weekends."

He felt such a wave of love at her confession that she cared so much for his son that he couldn't control himself. He pulled her back into the hug, wrapping her up tight in his arms, conscious of the tears falling down his cheeks. He didn't normally cry, but it had been an enormously stressful month, what with his first full disaster co-ordination role on the Indonesian tsunami, the scope of which was previously unknown to him and which had lasted for over seven weeks, and then Rebecca's condition, and he had felt the long separation from Molly painfully. "Thanks," he sniffled into her hair as he stroked the nape of her neck with his right hand, enjoying the feel of her skin and the softness of her hair, "thank you for being a wonderful fiancée."

"That's my job, ain't it?" she told him, her face against his chest, "besides, I reckon young Sam'll have you wrapped around his little finger in about five minutes flat. You'll need me 'ere!" she joked.

"I'm sad that you have such a low opinion of my parenting skills, Lance Corporal Dawes," he growled playfully.

"Oh no Boss, I'm sure you make a great father," she told him, "it's just that 'e needs a mother or an elder sister as well while Rebecca's not 'ere."

"Oh and which will you be – the mother or the elder sister?" he asked, curious.

"A bit of both I reckon, Boss. It won't all be sweetness and light you know. He'll start getting antsy and pushin' and you're gonna have to bollock him at times you know." She answered.

He looked at her, marvelling that this young women, not even 22 years old, had so much maturity in her. He supposed that was one of the reasons he loved her. She was an amazing mixture - still young and raw in so many ways, but so mature in others. He was so lucky to have her. "I reckon you're right Dawesy, and I couldn't be happier to have you here." Her stomach rumbled at about the same time that the potatoes made themselves known by boiling over, and he realised he had totally forgotten about dinner. He disengaged from her apologetically and then rushed over to drain the potatoes and then make sure the sausages weren't too burnt, which luckily they weren't. She sat down at the table and watched him as he finished up the preparations and laid an extra place setting for her. Then they smiled at each other, he drew a deep breath and called Sam down, "SAM, dinner's ready! And there's a special guest!"

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

Rebecca James smiled sadly as her son left the room, pausing at the door only to wave goodbye to her. She waved back. It was Tuesday evening and she was all set for her operation tomorrow. The surgical and medical team had spent most of yesterday afternoon and today running final tests and her consultant had been in to see her for a last time before the operation tomorrow morning. They were about as ready as possible, but it was still touch and go. She had phase 3 ovarian cancer, but there were complications, and it was touch and go whether the operation would be successful and, even if it was, she still had to look forward to a long course of chemotherapy. It had been a horrible shock to get the diagnosis, particularly when there was almost no-one there to support her. She was lucky that Charles had been so wonderful. She had spoken to her parents right away, obviously, but it had taken them the best part of four days to finish what they needed to with her brother and his family and get back from Australia, and those four days had been tough. She had no right to have expected Charles to be there for her, but he had been and for that she was grateful.

And she was pleased that he had been true to his word and had been there for Sam as well. When he had been injured on his last tour of Afghanistan and it had become clear that he might have to leave the Army, she had been jealous. Everything she'd wanted was there, but they'd divorced seven months prior, and he'd made it clear that he wasn't interested in going backwards. And realistically nothing would have happened anyway, since she was already going out with Sean at that point. And to be fair, it wasn't only the Army that had come between them. They had married too young and discovered that they only had a limited number of joint interests, but it had still hurt that he was leaving the Army when that was what she had been wanting him to do, but now someone else would benefit from that.

When she'd briefly met Molly at the hospital she was angry and hurt. She'd picked up the chemistry between them straight away. Who could miss it? But what was Charles doing? This was a private soldier, not an officer or anyone of a comparable class to him, and she was so young as well – how could he make a fool of himself like this? She had tried to put it aside, telling herself she was mistaking the situation but then, after he returned to Bath, he had confirmed that he was going out with Molly. She had concluded that it was none of her business and expected that it wouldn't last, but then it had and, to add insult to injury, Charles had introduced Sam to Molly and he had really liked her.

He had come back from their first meeting happily talking about Molly-this and Molly-that, oblivious to the pain it caused her to hear about her ex-husband with someone else. She couldn't blame him; he was just a kid after all. But it hadn't got any better over time as it became clear that Charles and Molly were very serious and Charles moved away to Aldershot to be with her. And the worst thing was that Molly had never done anything wrong. She had been supportive of Charles, behaved admirably with Sam and even made sure that Charles allocated enough time to be in his son's life. When they met at a few of Sam's things she knew she had been a bit of a bitch but she just couldn't help it. This woman, no actually more like a girl, wasn't even 22 but she seemed to have everything, and as Rebecca's relationship with Sean broke down it had become increasingly difficult for her to be civil to Molly.

And then came this illness, and suddenly Molly became a very important person in her life. Because if Rebecca died, it would be Molly who would have to bring up her son.

And Rebecca was having to re-evaluate her feelings. One incident had helped this re-evaluation more than any other. Sam had bounced in this afternoon, happy to see her. Charles had dropped him off at her room for an hour and told them he'd be back later. He had already called this morning to tell her that Molly had come over to stay and support him and Sam, and that he hoped it was OK.

How could she say anything? She had already suggested that Molly come at the weekends, so she couldn't turn around and tell Charles that she wasn't welcome. And the truth was she felt that having Molly there would be great for Sam. Sam had told her many stories of how Molly had comforted him when he had fallen over or had given him sisterly advice about things that had happened at school. And today's development had just reinforced that she would be a great support mechanism for him.

Sam had been telling her about his day, but as he talked more she could see something was bothering him. "What is it darling?" she had asked him gently.

He had looked at her almost shyly, "I love you Mummy," he had told her.

"I love you too Sam, but what's wrong?" she had asked, worried.

He had looked at her, obviously conflicted, "Molly told me not to tell you cos it would hurt you. I'm really sorry Mummy," he had told her, crying. Just as she went to ask again what was happening he had told her, all in a rush, "I asked Molly whether I should call her Mummy and she said "No" because I already had a Mummy who loved me very much and would love me wherever she was, but I should always call her Molly." Sam had looked at her, obviously seeking reassurance, "I'm sorry Mummy. I don't want to hurt you."

She had wrapped her son up in a hug, trying to reassure him that it was OK. All the while pondering the amazing young woman that her ex-husband had decided to build a life with. Molly had obviously tried to keep Sam quiet, knowing that the revelation would upset Rebecca, but she must have known that there was still a good chance that he would tell her. So maybe this, then, was a message from Molly to her, telling her she had nothing to fear.

Thinking about it, Rebecca realised that Molly had never tried to impinge on her patch. She remembered when she discussed Charles' new relationship with her friend Sophie, Sophie had told her that her step mother had always been pushing to get attention from her, at the expense of her mother, yet Molly had never done anything like that.

She had realised there and then that she had misjudged Molly. And she may only have a few more hours to do something about it. When it came time for Sam to leave she had hugged him close, knowing that it might be the last time, and told him she loved him, hoping that if anything went wrong he would always have that to hold onto. He grew bored quickly and she smiled sadly, acknowledging that it was time for him to go, but asking to send his father in. As he left she tried to imprint his smiling face on her brain, hoping that that wouldn't be necessary and that she would wake up and everything would be fine with the world again.

Charles stuck his head round the door five minutes later, "Is everything OK Rebecca? Sam told me you wanted to see me?"

She had beckoned him in, asking him to close the door, "Charles, I've been a bit of an idiot, but I need to see Molly." She watched him, seeing his shock at her first pronouncement and then his defensive reaction to her second statement. As he went to speak, she held up her hand, "Please Charles, I need to clear the air between us, in case…well, you know. And there are things we need to speak about - alone. _Please_."

He gazed at her for what felt like an age, obviously trying to ascertain whether she was being truthful. Eventually, obviously having made a decision he said, "OK, she's in the car with Sam but I'll send her in." Then he crossed the room, squeezing her hand, "Good luck Rebecca, we'll be here tomorrow afternoon in case you wake up early, and we'll bring Sam as soon as he gets out of school in the evening." Then he smiled at her as reassuringly as possible, and left. She was impressed that he didn't even seem to countenance that she wouldn't wake up, but they had said everything they needed to about that and she knew he'd take care of Sam if the worst happened. She waited for Molly to come in, staring at the door, considering the difficult words that she needed to say.

* * *

**A/N 1 I let the cat out of the bag there on one of their personal milestones. I was considering deleting it but decided to leave it in. Interesting to see if anybody spotted it. I'm sure you all did…**

**A/N Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.**

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**Common Ground – Chapter 4**

Molly paused outside Rebecca's room to brace herself. To say that her relationship with Rebecca up to now had been difficult was an understatement. She had tried, Lord she'd tried, but any attempts to start a conversation with Rebecca had been thrown back in her face. When she greeted Rebecca she was normally civil but when Molly asked her a question she would respond with one word answers and she always had this hard glint to her eye and hard set to her mouth which suggested she'd rather be peeling her skin off than talk to Molly. Sometimes she would look at Molly like she was something she had scraped off her shoe. To be fair, a few times when he had noticed this Charles had stepped in and had words with her, but it was unpleasant nevertheless. It was amazing how different two people who had been married to one another could be, she thought. Charles was the exact opposite – friendly to everyone unless they gave him reason not to be, while with Rebecca you felt like you needed to pass some test to be worthy of her attention. And it was highly unlikely that little Molly Dawes, who grew up on a Council Estate in Newham, could ever pass that test.

To start with Molly had told Charles that she didn't want to go to any of Sam's events because of her treatment, but then she'd realised it was unfair to punish Sam for what was essentially an adult problem. If Sam wanted her to be there then she'd damn well do the best she could for him and stuff her feelings. It wasn't particularly comfortable but she'd had worse. And it was then down to Charles to make it up to her! And to give him his due he'd definitely tried. She didn't want to bring bribery into their relationship, and certainly not when it came to doing things for Sam, but it was as if Charles took Rebecca's bad behaviour as a challenge to excel at treating her right. While he was an attentive lover at the best of times, they'd had some of the best sex she'd ever had after Rebecca had been particularly difficult and that one time, after Sam's first rugby match last Autumn, when she thought that he hadn't noticed that she'd gone into the toilet for a good old cry, he had not only given her the best sex ever, but also taken her out to their favourite bolthole at the Four Seasons and booked a fantastic massage for her.

Now Charles clasped her shoulders and looked at her reassuringly, "It's not what you think Mols," he told her, "But I can wait out here if you want?" he asked her.

She thought about it. It was more the uncertainty than anything else. She could handle bullying. Had handled it for most of her life actually. What brought her down was that she was doing the best she could for Rebecca's son and Rebecca was still being a complete bitch to her. It just wasn't right. She smiled up at his concerned face, "It's all right Charlie. Don't worry. Go and take care of Sam and I'll meet you in the car." He smiled sadly at her, and wrapped her up in a hug, "Just remember that I love you Molly Dawes, more than anyone in the world." He held her tight for a few moments, squeezed her, disengaged and then, with one last look over his shoulder, he left her to it.

She stood in the corridor trying to control her breathing. When he said things like that to her, it just about melted her. And in public no less. She thought back to the regimented Captain James she had first known and compared him with the demonstrative Charles James she now knew. There was no comparison. This one was loads better.

She took a deep breath. It was time to do this. She knocked on the door and was told to come in. She entered to see Rebecca sitting up in the bed, wearing just a surgical gown and half covered by a blanket. She smiled timidly and said, "Molly, thanks for coming. Please have a seat." Pointing to the chair next to the bed. Straight away this was different. Rebecca looked so vulnerable, and the hard edge she normally had in her voice and her eyes was totally absent. Molly sat in the chair and tried to avoid making eye contact, ending up staring at the end of the bed.

Rebecca's next words totally gobsmacked her, "Molly, I think I owe you an apology. I've been a real bitch to you. I was jealous that you had Charles and then, when you got on so well with Sam, I was worried that you'd take him away from me as well."

She looked up, surprised, "Rebecca, I would never take Sam away from you. He's your son. And he's a lovely boy. You must be really proud of him."

Rebecca smiled sadly, "I am. And I see now that my concerns were unfounded. I want to thank you for what you told Sam about me being his mother, it means a lot."

She'd wondered whether Sam would let the cat out of the bag on that but had thought there was a 50/50 chance he would, "I meant what I said to him. Whatever 'appens, you'll always be 'is mother Rebecca." She reached for Rebecca's hand and squeezed it, "But please know that if the worst 'appens I will care for Sam as though 'e were my own son. Even if other kids come along he'll never be forgotten."

Rebecca looked straight into her eyes. She was surprised to see tears and warmth in those normally cold grey/blue eyes, but supposed she shouldn't have been since there were tears in hers as well, "Th- Thank you Molly. That's all I could ask for. I was going to ask you to look after him, but you're a better woman than I, particularly after I've been such a bitch to you. Thank you." They smiled at each other in a fragile way, made some small talk and then Molly left Rebecca to her thoughts, pausing only to wipe her eyes before she left the hospital building.

Charles looked up as she got in the car, asking, "OK?" and she nodded, knowing she hadn't fooled him, but he let it go until later. His only view on the conversation when she told him later, was, "About time. I'm sorry she hurt you Mols and I know how hard it was for you, but she got there in the end." Then he had gone on to thank her for what she said about Sam and tell her how important she was to him. She supposed he was right. They had got there in the end. She hoped that her fledgling relationship with Rebecca would be able to run for more than a few hours.

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

As she lay in bed on Tuesday night, Molly Dawes reflected on a tough few months for both her and her fiancé. When Charles had got the call to go to Indonesia they had only been back from the Caribbean for two days and, since she had still had a week of leave left, she had decided to fly out with him to see what she could do to help. As an experienced trauma medic, her skills were much in need and the Red Cross had been delighted when she had volunteered. In those first few days they hadn't seen much of one another, apart from during the four to five hours they had managed to grab to sleep at night. The scale of the disaster was bigger than anything she had ever seen before and he had spent hours and days trying to set up the logistical supply chain so that supplies and people could flow into the affected areas and get where they were most needed, while she had worked in the medical centres and gone out with teams on the ground to help rescue people who were trapped. It was only in the latter part of the week that he had had more time for first response work and they had been able to work together more.

She had had to leave after the week since she had commitments in the UK, culminating in her JNCO course in early April. She had been determined to be more physically and mentally prepared this time round and he had been helping her with her fitness and testing her on the coursework for over three months. As a result the course, though tough, hadn't been anything like as hard as the PNCO course she had attended on returning from her second tour in Afghanistan. Even though he was in Indonesia he had still sent her encouraging texts and left voicemails when possible, showing her his love and support. But the time apart, which was now approaching two months, had been hard and she had really been looking forward to spending time with him when they were both back, yet Rebecca's illness had threatened to put a stop to that.

She had decided when he picked her up from the course and told her that Rebecca had suggested she stay at the weekends that she would try to get leave so she could spend more time with him. After saying goodbye to him on Sunday afternoon, she had immediately called Sergeant Smith, her company sergeant, to ask for his advice, apologising repeatedly for calling him on a Sunday. He had understood her problem and had proposed a number of possible solutions. Then they had approached Captain MacDonald together on Monday morning. The Captain was a kind man and had met Charles on a number of occasions, both at logistics and medical response courses and when he had given a presentation to the staff of her regiment, so he had already been well-disposed to her request and approved it without any issues. Then they had sat down with HR and her leave had been approved by 15.00 that day.

Charles' face when she had turned up on Rebecca's doorstep had been a picture, but when she had seen his expression, she knew she'd done the right thing. He'd tried not to let on but she knew Indonesia had been extremely stressful for him and the responsibility for managing the entire Red Cross in country response to the crisis had been huge. While he was no stranger to responsibility in the Army, this was of a whole different order of magnitude, and it had carried on for over 6 weeks. He had already been nearly at the end of his tether and then to have this issue with Rebecca at the end of it was just beyond a joke.

It was particularly poignant considering that he had planned their holiday to the Caribbean, and his proposal, so carefully. And it _had_ been magical. But since he had proposed they had spent less than 13 days together, and more than half of those had been in Indonesia; hardly relaxing.

She had not understood why he was so insistent on taking her to the Caribbean. From her point of view, a holiday was a holiday. And a sunshine holiday in February was particularly exciting, no matter where it was. But he had gone on and on about how the Caribbean was magical and had to be seen to be believed, and when they had got there she had finally understood why. They had gone to the island of Nevis, a tiny island with a population of only 12,000 which comprised a dormant volcano, rainforest and was surrounded by a string of beautiful sandy beaches. The first morning at their hotel she had suddenly understood what he was talking about. As they had wandered up the beach after breakfast there had not been a soul around, apart from the beautiful butterflies flying near the mangrove swamps beside the beach, the frigate birds overhead and the hunting pelicans. The sea breeze had whistled through the palm trees and the feel of the fine white sand and the warm waves lapping against their feet had converted her.

On the second day he had driven her round to an isolated and deserted stretch of beach, fittingly called Lovers Beach. He had settled her on the sand on her beach towel, set up an umbrella next to her, and left her enjoying the beautiful sea and sand and the feel of the sun on her body, returning a few minutes later with the chill box that she had noticed in the boot of the car. He had put it down behind her and then laid down next to her, holding her hand. She had been dozy and hadn't really registered the presence of the cool box until an hour later when he started to pull snacks out of it. She had sat up and noticed the bottle of champagne and glasses and asked what that was for. It was at that moment that he had turned round and knelt in front of her, holding out the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever seen in her life, and staring into her eyes.

His beautiful brown eyes held more warmth and depth of emotion than she had ever seen and that, in itself was amazing, because his eyes were extremely expressive. She had stared at him, dumbfounded, as he had started his speech, culminating with, "Molly Dawes, will you marry me?" Could he really be proposing to _her_?

They had talked about marriage indirectly a couple of times over the past few months but she had not thought anything of it, but it was now clear that he had been sounding her out. Through most of the early part of their relationship she had been fully expecting him to dump her for someone better but he hadn't. As the months turned into a year they had grown closer and closer; closer than she had ever been to anyone in her life and closer to anyone than she'd ever dreamed was possible.

When he'd first explained to her the difference between making love and having sex when they _had_ made love for the first time after their first date she hadn't really understood beyond that the sex had been the best ever, but when he talked about trusting someone so fully with your feelings, hopes and dreams that you let them into both your body and your mind she had begun to think about it more and she realised that he was right. And now she understood about intimacy in a way that she hadn't before. She had had sex with lots of men, but he was the first and only man she had ever made love to and he was the only man that she had ever let down her barriers with, and their relationship was all the stronger for that.

He was always there for her when she needed him, a best friend, adviser and support. Someone who would tell her when she was being a prat but applaud her when she was doing a good job. Both her Mum and her Nan had told her he was a keeper and even her Dad had quickly warmed to him. She, of course, loved his parents, particularly his mother, and she got on well with Sam as well. And on top of that the sex was brilliant…and he cooked! He was the most considerate lover she had ever had; actually the only considerate lover she'd ever had! She often wondered how she could be so lucky.

And now he was proposing to her. _To her_. Molly Dawes. The no-hope girl from the East End. She had flung her arms around him and told him ecstatically "_Yes!_"

She could only describe the rest of the holiday as truly magical. Strolling round the quiet island roads, avoiding herds of wild sheep or goats, donkeys, cows and sometimes monkeys. Admiring the beautiful plants, birds and butterflies inland or relaxing on the beach side by side, listening to the sound of the waves. And then stuffing their faces in the hotel restaurant in the evenings and retiring to their villa for fantastic sex. It was the best holiday she'd ever had, and he had surprised her on the way back by stumping up for business class on the return flight. He had slept for most of it, but she had been like a kid at a toy store, enjoying the films, games, food and, best of all, the flat bed.

Then Indonesia had happened, followed by her course and finally the situation with Rebecca. When he had come out of the hospital this afternoon and told her that Rebecca wanted to see her, she didn't know what she had expected from the conversation, but it certainly wasn't what she got. The potential to have a normal, maybe even good relationship, with Rebecca was exciting and she hoped that Rebecca's operation would be successful, for Sam and for Charles, but also because it would give her and Molly the potential to explore building a better relationship, maybe even a friendship. She fell asleep pondering that exciting thought.

* * *

**A/N 1 There were a few requests for a separate one-shot about their engagement, so interested to know if you think I covered it adequately here?**

**A/N 2 Please review! **

**For the guest reviewer Az who had a query about the shopping, I'm certainly not conscious of that issue but if you want to discuss further you need to get a FF account because I can't communicate with you unless you do.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own Our Girl. Everything you recognise was created by Tony Grounds and is owned by the BBC.**

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**Common Ground – Chapter 5**

"Alright Becks? How's the pain today?" Molly asked from the doorway, in her own inimitable way, walking into her room and sitting down in the chair next to the bed as Rebecca replied that she was feeling better.

_What a turnaround_ Rebecca reflected. To imagine her life without Molly in it now was inconceivable and she couldn't believe that she had denied herself two years of knowing this extraordinary person through being a complete and utter bitch.

It had started on the day after her operation. She couldn't remember too much from the day of the operation. She knew that Charles had brought Sam in and she also remembered her parents being there as well. She vaguely remembered Sam being upset by her state but she really couldn't remember much else. She'd had to rely on the fact that Charles and Molly would take care of him.

The next day was a lot clearer, although she was conscious of the fact that she had been in a lot more pain. The memory of pain was really strange, she thought. You could remember that you had been in a lot of pain and that it had been really uncomfortable at the time but you couldn't really remember the actual feel of the pain. She supposed that was a good thing though.

Charles and Molly had come in to see her on the Thursday morning. Although they had religiously brought Sam in to see her in the afternoons of school days, they often came themselves during the morning to see her on their own. When she asked Charles about it he had told her that his overwhelming memory of being in hospital was the boredom. She agreed and she was touched that they came to spend time with her, if only an hour, when they could have been doing any number of other things.

She had still been on pretty heavy painkillers that first morning, but she had been a lot more with it. They had asked her how she was doing, and they had talked about how the surgeon had been pretty happy yesterday. The nurse had been in to check her obs and had told her that she was due a scan the next day. This was a new development and she had been worried. They had asked the nurse why but she didn't know. It was a little thing but it seized on Rebecca's mind and she was getting more and more worried. Finally, Molly had had enough. She told Charles to stay with Rebecca while she headed out to track down some information.

She marched back about 15 minutes later with the news that the scan was routine and was just designed to make sure that the operation had been as successful as the surgeons hoped. She had huffed exasperatedly, observing that "bloody doctors" were good for "doin' but not communicatin'!" a view that Rebecca agreed with only too much.

Molly had been like that all the way through her stay in hospital, cutting through all the medical mumbo jumbo and telling her what was going on in plain English. She had found her to be a complete breath of fresh air and looked forward to her visits enormously.

When she got home, they had ended up spending even more time together. Rebecca had arranged for a nurse to come in twice a day for the first week to help her with moving around, going to the toilet, showers, washing and that kind of thing. But Molly had been fantastic. On the first day that Rebecca had been home she had only looked in on Rebecca every two hours, but as the days had worn on they had spent more and more time together. At first she had helped Rebecca with moving around, as well as dressing and re-dressing her wound, but as their relationship had grown, and Rebecca had got better, she had trusted her with more. Within four days the nurse was superfluous because Molly was able to help Rebecca to the toilet and stand by outside the shower, and help with all of her dressing changes.

The things that surprised Rebecca most about Molly were her gentle touch but also her strength. When it came time to change her dressings Molly was gentle with her like with a baby, but when she was helping her to move around, Molly had a wiry strength which really surprised Rebecca, although she supposed it shouldn't have. One time when she had all but fallen over, Molly had caught her and supported her in such a way as to prevent damage to Rebecca's wound,s by pulling her close to her own body and almost holding her up. Molly was such a tiny woman, a good 4-5 inches shorter than Rebecca, but she had appeared to support Rebecca's entire weight with almost no effort. When Rebecca asked her about it Molly had simply looked at her sardonically and asked her, "ain'tcha seen our packs?! I'ave to carry your bodyweight around on my back every day!"

And Molly was always good fun to be with. Always cheerful, always with some funny but very apt observation about Charles or Sam, or some insult about some doctor or other person who had incurred her wrath. And she had a nickname for everybody. Including starched, stiff upper lip Rebecca. Who was now Becky or Becks. She would not take that from anyone else, and indeed had been quite rude about it to some people from school and uni, but from Molly it just felt right somehow.

\- OG - OG - OG - OG -

Charles James reflected on an outcome to the past few weeks that he could never have anticipated. Rebecca's operations had been more successful than they could have dared to hope for at the start of the process and she had been discharged from hospital within 10 days to start her recuperation. She would still have to undergo an extensive regime of chemotherapy, but the initial operations, using a groundbreaking surgical technique, seemed to have gotten the worst of the cancer.

The first operation had lasted significantly longer than expected but when the tired surgeons had come out to talk to her waiting parents and Charles they had been delighted. She had had to endure two more minor operations but at the end the surgeons were 90% sure that they had done what they had set out to do, and they had since been proven right.

Sam had been terribly upset to see his Mummy on the Wednesday evening after her first operation. She was drugged up to the eyeballs and very groggy and his Daddy and Molly had prevented him from climbing up onto her bed to hug her, but she had told him she loved him and that was the important part. He had realised at that point that his mother's condition had been much more serious than he'd been told and the next few days had been difficult both for them and his teachers, as he was in turns depressed and angry. But they'd all done their best, and they'd managed to get through it, aided by the fact that the Bath vs Sale match took place on the Sunday afterwards and he had enjoyed spending the day with his Daddy, grandfather and Uncle Matt.

As his mother continued to improve, and eventually came home, Sam had settled back into his routine and reverted to being the happy, carefree little boy that they all loved. Charles was pleased that the tough days hadn't continued since, as Molly had predicted, he'd had to shout at his son on at least two occasions, and he knew she had as well. He didn't enjoy doing that, but it was a duty of a father and, as Molly had observed previously, he was all about duty. Besides, it was for Sam's own good.

The real surprise though had been the growing relationship between Molly and Rebecca. Since Rebecca had been discharged from hospital Molly had spent many hours with her. Initially she had just used her CMT and nascent nursing skills to help Rebecca with movements and minimising her pain, but her cheerful, always-look-on-the-bright-side personality had also helped Rebecca cope with the boredom of being flat on her back. And as the relationship had developed Rebecca had come to trust her more and more, and now Molly had grown into a trusted confidante. Rebecca found that Mollys' sparky sense of humour and her irreverent attitude towards doctors very much appealed to her, particularly in her current state. After nearly a week confined to her bed, Rebecca had managed to make it down to the family room for the first time and he had found her and Molly enjoying a brew together and talking about wedding dresses.

If truth be told, while he was pleased for Molly, he was slightly concerned by the fact that his ex-wife and his fiancée were getting on so well and hoped they didn't get into comparing notes on him or he would surely be royally screwed!

Rebecca's recovery was on schedule and last night they had had a small party at her house to celebrate, with just Sam's grandparents, Molly, Charles, Sam and the guest of honour, Rebecca. It had been a nice family get together and Charles had enjoyed rolling out some of his favourite dishes. He had been surprised and gratified about how their little family had come together through all of this. He was now comfortable in the presence of Rebecca's parents, and they in his, and he knew Molly was too. And best of all Molly and Rebecca had developed their own friendship. A tough road still remained for Rebecca, with a major course of chemotherapy under way, but she was now able to function on her own and they had decided between them that Charles and Molly could return to Aldershot.

Which was what brought him back to today. He had just finished packing Molly's and his stuff into their car and headed back to the kitchen to say goodbye to Rebecca. As he walked in, she was hugging Molly. _What a change_, he reflected.

"Thanks Molly, _for everything_." She told his fiancée, "I'm looking forward to that girls' day out we promised ourselves the next time the boys are at the rugby."

Molly smiled and told her, "Me too Becks, I'll check some dates when we get home and get back to you. In the mean-time if any of those pesky doctors piss you off, just give me a call!"

Rebecca smiled back, "Will do." Rebecca seemed a lot more chilled out these days. In the past if someone used colourful language anywhere near Sam she would wince or snap at them, now she accepted that it was a part of Molly and took it in her stride. And the fact that she allowed Molly to call her Becks or even Becky just astonished him. Never in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined that he'd hear that, or that she would be seemingly pleased to take it.

Turning to Charles, she held out her hands for a hug and, as he hugged her, she told him, "Charles, thanks for stepping into the breach. I couldn't have got through this if it wasn't for you. Thanks for being such a brilliant father, and a brilliant friend to me, even though I probably didn't deserve it." They smiled at each other, then Rebecca called Sam in from the Family Room where he was playing with his Lego, "Sam, your father and Molly are leaving!"

After they had both hugged Sam goodbye and promised that they would be over to see him within a few weeks, they shared a look and took their leave. As Molly and him strapped themselves into the car and he started the engine he was pleased to see both Rebecca and Sam on the doorstep waving them goodbye.

He was very much looking forward to getting back to _their_ house with _their_ bed, and _their_ personal space but he couldn't deny that he was pleased with the relationship that he and Molly and Rebecca had developed over the course of the past few weeks, all built on the common ground of their love for Sam.

THE END

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**A/N 1 Please review! **

**A/N 2 To say I've been overwhelmed by the reaction to this piece would be an understatement. Thanks so much for all the reviews – they are very much appreciated. This is the end of this story but not the last of my stories about Molly and Charles…**


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